Two animals die on the same day at Palm Beach Zoo

The capybara, one of the world's largest rodents, was found dead in her swimming pool.

The panther died soon after surgery when he struggled to rouse from anesthesia.

The two beloved animals died hours apart on Thursday, and Palm Beach Zoo employees are mourning their loss.

Missy, the capybara, who died shy of 11 years, was among the oldest in captivity in Florida. She was blind from cataracts, possibly from long hours in the bright Florida sun, and she had been recovering from infections last month.

Workers discovered her body Thursday morning in her swimming pool, which she loved and which has comforted zookeepers: She was happy in her final moments.

It was Osceola's death no one could have anticipated.

He was a panther, not yet 2, and one of the zoo's high-profile animals. He had undergone surgery Thursday, and when he woke up from anesthesia he tried to get up. Then he stopped breathing. Veterinarians rushed to resuscitate him.

"I still need more information," said Genevieve Dumonceaux, the clinical veterinarian who cares for the zoo's 1,280 animals. "I don't have real answers."

Zoo employees were in low spirits Friday. At 8:55 a.m., their walkie-talkies stopped humming in a moment of silence. The community heaped condolences on the zoo's Facebook page.

"My heart is breaking," one person wrote.

Administrators are waiting for clues from pathologists. Were there undiagnosed illnesses? Could they have done anything differently?

Missy had light brown fur, a broad snout and a chubby frame. Capybaras grow up to 150 pounds and generally live 8 to 10 years, but can reach 12 years in rare cases. They like to hang around their extended family, but Missy outlived all of hers.

After her eyes clouded, she couldn't tell night from day.

"The keepers had to let her know when the food was there," said Jan Steele, general curator for the Palm Beach Zoo.

Earlier this year, zookeepers introduced Missy to three new capybaras. But they didn't get along, and Missy ended up with scratches that became infected. Dumonceaux treated the infections in the medical center while landscapers renovated her display.

She went home Monday to fancier, cleaner digs. A zookeeper discovered Missy at 8:30 a.m. Thursday.

"At least for a little bit of time she was a happy little capybara," Dumonceaux said.

The panther's last day was more inexplicable.

Osceola was born in Washington state in the wild. When his mother died, a zoo in Oregon took him in. There he became acquainted with Micco, another panther orphan from Idaho. (Sometimes they're called cougars or mountain lions in the Pacific Northwest.)

In Palm Beach County, Osceola's caretakers noticed a lump on his back that seemed to grow and shrink. Lately it was getting much bigger. Dumonceaux decided it was time to find out what it was.

She woke up early Thursday and came into the zoo around 6:30 a.m.. She began setting up the operating room and talked over the plan once more.

Veterinarians and zookeepers filled the room as caretakers hauled the anesthetized panther in on a blue stretcher. Some employees dabbed his paw with paint and touched it to pieces of paper for souvenirs.

Then Dumonceaux checked out the lump. It turned out to be a basically harmless fluid buildup. She cleaned it and then neutered him.

They drove him back out to his exhibit, laid him down and gave him new drugs to counteract the anesthesia. As the medical crew returned to the clinic, a zookeeper watched him from a safe distance while he woke up. Osceola had fared his operation beautifully, Dumonceaux said.

Twenty minutes passed, and Dumonceaux got a call. Osceola wasn't breathing. They raced back to the panther display.

"We gave him CPR as long as we felt we could," Dumonceaux said. "We could not revive him."

The zoo held a staff meeting Friday morning. Everyone was distraught. They wanted to know what happened and how Micco, his adoptive brother, was holding up. Panthers are solitary animals, and Micco is doing just fine.

After that, there was no more time to grieve. Dumonceaux returned to work. She had media interviews and Missy's postmortem exam that afternoon.

"I've got 1,278 other patients out there," she said. "Things have to go on."